Assessing Future Of 5 Struggling New Jersey Devils Players

New Jersey Devils left wing Tomas Tatar (90): James Carey Lauder-USA TODAY Sports
New Jersey Devils left wing Tomas Tatar (90): James Carey Lauder-USA TODAY Sports
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New Jersey Devils
New Jersey Devils left wing Janne Kuokkanen (59): Tom Horak-USA TODAY Sports

Janne Kuokkanen

This one might be the most confusing of them all. Janne Kuokkanen was a very productive player last season. He came into this season with a chance to earn a spot on the top line with Jack Hughes. He was paired there last season with Hughes and Yegor Sharangovich. Somehow, when he came into the season this year, he very quickly found himself in a third-line role.

The third line has been a point of contention for this team all season long. The Devils just haven’t been able to find the right players to put there. Lindy Ruff has a lot of trust for his fourth line led by Michael McLeod, especially in defensive situations, but the third line plays like a fourth line most of the time.

Right now, Janne Kuokkanen is injured and not playing. He’s been more out of sight out of mind for many. He was the key piece in the Sami Vatanen trade. He’s someone the Devils hope works out, but he’s not some they need to work out. There are prospects who can replace him. However, if the Kuokkanen from last year shows up again, there’s definitely a place for him on this roster.

There’s no actual timetable for Kuokkanen’s return. However, it might be best to keep him out as long as they can. Kuokkanen needed a reset more than anyone on the roster. This will give him a chance to re-evaluate what went wrong this season. He can come back and use his relentless motor and incredible skill to be the player he once was. Kuokkanen has another year on his contract, and the Devils have control of him after that. We’ll see where this goes, but the Devils will undoubtedly give Kuokkanen another chance.